Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1887-08-11
SEM HASTINGS DUCK.
The Part Which It Played in Developing a
Rich Mine
Alta Taltforpfa

The Part Which 1t Played in Developing
Rich Mine.
Alta California
An Anticipated individual dressed in
exceedingly shabby clothes, and with
gray hirsute appendage TO his chin that
would have made an ambitious goat of
the male persuasion feel decidedly en-
yious, amhled into the rooms of the State
Mining Bureau yesterday. He immed.
lately began TO inspect the varieties of
ore and minerals on exhibition there as
il he WAS an officer regularly appointed
by the State for that purpose His ad-
vent upon the scene was soon made APP
parent by series of cultural SOUNDS
which he emitted at Intervals of five
seconds. AT last these sounds eliminated
in a prolodged:
"Howlin' snakesw
He was standing before some particu.
larry fine specimens of gold quartz.
II s'pose they call that gold,n he snort
ed, addressing ameek little man who
stood beside him.
The meeR little man nodded assent.
"Wagh," with another snort, this time
indicative of disgust. "D' they call them
specimens of 49g Say, don't reckon you
we're ever up at-'Cuss the Luck bar,
were your
II don'tthink ever was" said the meek
III an, thoughtfully.
"0f course you never knowed Jem
Hastings then; me and him ran the
bar in the early 50s. Talk of gold. Why
we wouldn't trouble bout them ere chunks
of gilded rocks. We he'd the Jumps of
solid metal big as you hand. Who're
| dye s'p9se our mine wasp
"Giye il up was the leconic reply.
Fright in the middle of Mudhen Lake,
and TWAS tur'ble deep down, too"
The meek little man began TO show
| signs of interest and inquired how they
got the auriferous article from the
watery depths.
"Ah,' pursued the ancient one with
chuckle, chats whar our genius came in.
| You see, Jem owned n big duck. It's
name was Buster. We discovered tho
mine in this way. One day Buster was
| diving and havin' royal time in the
water, and after he had been sportin
about this way for bout an hour, we
seed him swinmin' to shore with some
thin shiny in his beak. Cuss me If
'twasn't nugget of gold 'Rah,' says
Jem, our fortunes made She took
| Buster and petted him and gave him
solid meal of cold Grub. Wal, that kinder
encouraged the bird, and as soon rs he
he'd stuffed himself, Buster Jest went out
on that ere lake agin and begun diving
and bringing up the GOLD at great rate,
Ye kin jest bang me with n pick handle
If Buster in the coures of the next two
hours didn twork like Digger Injun
when he gifts flash OF whisky, and pile
up regular heap of lite nuggets on the
shore. Then he got kinder tired, and we
took him and the gold TO the tent. WAL"
continued the ancient narrator taking
! deep breath, 1--WE worked Buster for two
days, and yer had better b'lieve that we
had goodish sight of gold. More'n
twenty-five pounds, / guess. Then an
ice struck Jem. lie concluded that
there we're bigger nuggets at the bottom
of the lake which Buster couldn't handle
SO we rugged up a new scheme. We threw
big sack into the lake with rock in It,
so that IL would sink, and with rope
tied to the top of it. Fust we showed it
TO Buster, and he quacked as if he knowed
just what it was for and when We threw
IL into the lake Buster followed, He was
out of sightin a minute, and stayed under
long time, Next we seed him poke his
head up for minute as if to breathe,
and then go down agin. He's film, up
the sack, sure, says Jem. In bout m
hour Buster swan ashore, and cooked his
weather eye up at us ms if TO. say. ITS
all right Jem and took hold OF the
rope TO pull the sack in; bot il wouldn't
bulge twas 30 loaded with gold. Wall, to
make a long story short for it gryes
me TO think of it Jem got mad and
waded in TO get better grip, aud got
caught in an undorcurreht, or somethin',
and was drowned. Buster was sittin' on
the shore watohin' proceedings, an when
he seed Jem 90 under he jes gave one
agonized' quaok and jumped into He
aotaly committed suicide for love of
Jem. | couldn't git the bag ashore, so l
cut the rope of short. loft with gold
was in the tent, but lost il In unfortun-
ate speculation. Now what | propose ia
this: | know the location Of that ere lake,
and If | could get some capitplist, like
you, for instance
"Say" cried the little man, indignation
getting the better of his habitual meek
ness, "did you ever hear of Ananias2p
"Annis Nicer" said tho "tough" custo-
mer, tboughtfully; "she might have lived
over in Poor Shoats camp. but I'm
name our way"
Here" cried the diminutiye man,
again, stake this quarter aud go and buy
pamphlet edition of Baron Munchu.
sem
"Thankee," muttered the other, &C
ceptipg the silver; "that will do TOWARDS
organizing an exploring party. But
lemme tell you somethin bout the, child
hood days OF Jem's duck"
But the little man had vanished, aud
the self styled relic of the departed days
OF gold lost no time in following his ex-
ample.
lie Gave Himself Away.
San Francisco Chronicle.
1 She would never have been sure If he
had not given it away himself, He had
been spending his vhcatioh az a camp up
/ in the country She knew there had been